Foundation construction



April 10, 1.934. wl .L NEWMAN 1,954,094

FOUNDATI ON CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 25, 19552 v Mill/11111111 Patented Apr. 10, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION 9 Claims.

This invention relates to the art of constructing underground foundations of concrete or the like particularly where such foundations extend for a considerable distance below the surface.

As examples of the same may be noted building foundations which are frequently made by digging holes or wells of several feet in diameter and frequently extending for one hundred feet or more down to bed rock and then lling said wells with concrete. Heretofore the common practice `has been to provide the walls with lagging as the work proceeded and to keep the well free of water. In accordance with the present invention I provide a method of forming such foundations without having workmen go below the surface and provide a method whereby the wells may be readily lled with concrete which is deposited under the water or muck with which the well is filled.

The objects of this invention are to provide new improvements in the art of foundation construction and to provide means for carrying out `such process or improvements; to provide a novel method of depositing concrete in a well or the like; to provide an improved tremie for the purposes indicated; to provide a tremie with means for loosening or removing a bottom cap or closure; to provide a treme with means for supplying air adjacent to the bottom thereof for loosening or agitating muck or mud so that it will not be mixed with the concrete; and to provide such other novel methods and improvements as will appear more fully from the following description.

In the accompanying drawing illustrating this l invention; Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional View of a well showing my improved tremie or concrete depositing apparatus therein;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing the bottom of the pipe with the cap in the process of removal;

Figure 3 isa view similar to Figure 2 showing the cap or closure removed and in position on the bottom of .the well and the concrete being deposited around the same; and

Figure-4 is a cross sectional View taken on the line 4&4 of Figure 2. The well or hole 5 is dug with any suitable drilling or boring apparatus adapted for such purpose and kept full of water and muck as indicated at 6, during the drilling operation, only such portion of the material excavated being removed, as will be carried out by the overflow of the water used in the drilling operation. As a consequence the muck or'water with suspended material is of comparatively high specific gravity and serves to prevent the walls from caving in.

After the well has been excavated preferably down to bed rock or other suitable foundation surface, it is filled with concrete by means of the apparatus illustrated. This comprises a pipe o1' tube '7 which is preferably formed of sections as indicated, these sections being provided with any suitable joints for connecting the ends. A hopper 8 is provided at the top for directing the concrete into the pipe. The lowermost section 9 preferably tapers outwardly so that its lower portion 10 is of considerably larger diameter than the pipe '7, so that the concrete will be spread over an enlarged area. The pipe is closed at the bottom by any suitable cap or closure such as a disc 11 hav ing a flange or projection fitting in the end of the section 10. In the arrangement shown this flange comprises an angle iron 1x2 which is secured to the plate or disc l1 and which fits closely in the pipe. The plate may also bereinforced by other transverse angles or bars 13 asshown.

This tremie or pipe with the bottom cap is lowered or forced down through the water .or muck y l until the cap rests on the bottom and is watertight so that no water or muck enters the same. The pipe is preferably made of heavy material but the buoyancy is so great that weight must ordinarily be added in order to force the same down to the bottom. For instance, in one installation I used sixteen inch extra heavy steel pipe and supported reinforcing bars therein and in addition to this weight used approximately one ton extra weight in order to force the pipe down in a well about fifty-five feet deep. Such extra weight may be applied at the top or in any convenient manner. In the arrangement shown I have illustrated reinforcing bars or rods 14: which are carried in the pipe l and which are held together by stirrups or other suitable fasteners 15.

After the pipe has been sunk to its lowermost position, it is then lled with concrete preparatory to filling the well and the pipe is then gradually raised in order to permit the concrete to flow out to the section 10 and its upper end preferably engages with a lug or abutment 1'7 on the inside of the pipe so that the cylinder will be held rigidly in the pipe. The cylinder is provided with a piston 18 having a piston rod 19 with a head 20 for engagement with the flange or ring l2 of the cap l1. The cylinder is provided with a stuliing box 21 for` the piston rod and with a spring 22 which tends to return the piston to raised or normal position. An air supply pipe 23 is connected with the upper end of the cylinder and leads to any suitable supply of air or fluid under pressure (not shown). A valve 24 is provided for admitting and shutting olf the supply of air to the cylinder. The portion of the pipe extending upwardly along the tremie '7 is preferably made in sections as indicated at 25, these sections being connected by hose or flexible couplings 26 which extend around the joints between the pipe sections. These couplings may be arranged as shown or provided with any of the coupling devices com- -monly used for this purpose. When it is desired to raise the pipe 'l to discharge the concrete, air is admitted to the cylinder 16 and will force the piston down to cause the head 20 to drive the cap olf from the end of the pipe. As soon as the cap is loosened, the weight of concrete thereon will of course tend to force it out or hold it against the bottom of the well. While I have shown a single cylinder it is obvious that more than one may be used if desired.

While concrete may be deposited in the manner indicated, under water which is clear or reasonably free from deposit, I have found that when the well is filled with muck and particularly heavy clay mixed with the water, the clay is apt to stick on the walls and prevent a homogeneous column of concrete from being formed. In order to prevent such defective columns I have provided means for agitating the water and tending to drive the clay or muck upwardly as shown. Such means comprises a pipe 27 which is bent to substantially circular form, as shown in Figure 4, and which is secured to the lower end of the pipe '7 in any suitable manner, as by means of straps 28. The ends of the pipe are closed by plugs 29. A supply pipe 30 which leads from any suitable source of fluid under pressure, such as air or steam, is connected to the center of the pipe 27 and leads upwardly along the pipe 7, being supplied with a valve 3l for regulating the air thereto. This pipe 30 is preferably made in sections secured to the sides of the sections of pipe 7 and connected with hose connections around the joints as shown. The pipe 27 has a plurality of holes 32 preferably arranged around the lower side. These holes also preferably increase in size from the ones nearest the inlet pipe 30 to those farther away from the pipe so that approximately the same amount of air will be discharged at all points around the periphery of the section 10.

With this arrangement, air may be admitted as shown in Figure l while the tremie 7 is being lowered so as to agitate the muck and drive it away from the lower end of the pipe, this being particularly desirable as the pipe reaches the bottom of the well. Then when the concrete begins to flow out at the bottom of the pipe as shown in Figure 3, the air passing over the top of the concrete will tend to agitate or raise the clay or rnuck from the water or cause flotation of the solids and will thereby free the same from the side walls of the well, thus making a comparatively clean surface against which the concrete will be deposited and the clay will not be mixed therewith` While I have shown and described a preferred form of my invention, it will be apparent that the saine may be modified in order to adapt it for different conditions and therefore I do not wish to be limited to the exact method and construction herein shown and described except as speciin the following claims in which I claim:

l. The method of depositing concrete under water containing solids through a tremie by utilizing air or fluid under pressure for agitating the material around the treniie and causing flotation of the solids, as described.

2. The method of depositing concrete under water containing mud, through a pipe which consists in supplying concrete to the pipe as the pipe is raised and agitating the water and mud around the lower end of the pipe by means of air under pressure.

3. The method of depositing concrete under water having clay or the like mixed therewith in a well which consists in placing a pipe in the well with its lower end extending to the bottom thereof, supplying concrete to the pipe and keeping a suflicient head therein at all times to prevent water from entering the bottom of the pipe, raising the pipe to permit the concrete to flow out at the bottom thereof, and agitating the water and material mixed therewith by supplying air under pressure around the periphery of the pipe at the lower end thereof.

e. The method of making foundations which consists in excavating a hole in the ground of substantial depth and maintaining the hole filled with water or mud during such excavating, then lowering a pipe having a closure on the bottom thereof through the mud to the bottom of the well, said pipe being water-tight, then filling the pipe with concrete and maintaining it filled during the succeeding operations until the well is filled with concrete, knocking the closure loose and raising the pipe to allow the concrete to escape from the bottom thereof as the pipe is raised, and agitating the contents of the well by means of fluid under pressure ejected into the well adjacent to the bottom of the pipe and around the periphery thereof.

5. The method of forming a reinforced concrete foundation, which consists in lowering a pipe having a detachable bottom, to the bottom of a previously completed well lled with water and excavated material, placing reinforcing members within the pipe and supporting them in predetermined posit-ion, then lling the pipe with concrete, vthen raising the pipe away from the detachable bottom and supplying concrete thereto for lling the well as the pipe is raised, and gradually raising the pipe and leaving the reinforcement in position to be embedded in the concrete.

6. The combination with a pipe of the character set forth, having a detachable cap for the lower end, of a cylinder secured to the pipe, a piston coacting with the cylinder, a piston rod actuated by the piston and adapted to engage with the cap to move the same from closed position, and means for supplying fluid under pressure to the cylinder.

'7. The combination with a pipe for placing concrete under water, of a pipe around the lower portion thereof having downwardly projecting openings, and means for supplying air to said pipe from a source of supply above the surface of the ground.

8. An apparatus for placing concrete below Water comprising a pipe formed of a plurality crease in distance from the conduit connectiom 9. The combination with a tremie for placing concrete in an excavation lled with water andi mud or insoluble material, of a pipe having a discharge adjacent to the bottom of the tremie and means for supplying air or other suitable iluid under pressure to the pipe whereby the Water and contents around the tremie may be agitated as the concrete is discharged.

WILLIAM J. NEi'iMiiN` 

